Hornets turn back Vikings

Saturday

Jan 26, 2013 at 9:00 AM

By Ed Patino

ed.patino@hillsdale.netHILLSDALE — There was no second half letdown for the Hillsdale High School boys basketball team this time around.With Zach VanOrman kicking off a fast start and Brandon Bisher hitting big shots to close the deal, the Hornets moved back into a first-place tie in the conference with a 65-51 victory over the Dundee Vikings in a Lenawee County Athletic Association game Friday.Hillsdale (10-2, 6-2 LCAA) avenged its December loss to the Vikings and moved into a first-place tie with them in the LCAA standings. Erie Mason and Onsted are also tied with the Hornets and Dundee.The Hornets also redeemed themselves from last Friday's loss at Erie Mason, where they squandered a 16-point lead. Against the Vikings, Hillsdale bolted to a 14-point lead in the first quarter and maintained a double-digit lead for most of the night. Dundee (9-3, 6-2 LCAA) battled back to within six late in the first half and eight in the fourth quarter, but hot shooting from Bisher and key free throws by Patrick Drews helped Hillsdale withstand the rally."This was probably a must-win game for us to have a chance at winning a league championship," Hillsdale coach Brad Felix said. "We've positioned ourselves for that opportunity down the stretch, and this was a big win to get back in it. We had a good week of practice and the guys responded well."Hillsdale came out of the blocks fast, shooting a whopping 72 percent from the floor in the opening quarter. Meanwhile, the Hornets held Dundee to just four free throws in the frame.VanOrman scored a pair of inside baskets to spark a run of eight straight Hillsdale points early in the third quarter. Andrew Wilcox capped the run by going coast-to-coast for a layup midway through the frame, giving the Hornets a 12-2 lead.Two more inside baskets by VanOrman and free throws by Drews gave Hillsdale an 18-4 lead by the end of the first quarter."Getting the ball inside was definitely part of the game plan," Felix said. "Zach had a big first quarter inside. We ran a lot of ball screens up top and we were able to exploit them underneath." Another basket by VanOrman early in the second quarter gave the Hornets a 15-point lead, but Dundee didn't go quietly. A floater by Aaron Anthony, a 3-pointer by Brett Clark and consecutive baskets by Travis Boggs pulled the Vikings to within 22-16 a minute later.Jimmy Chase stopped the run with a 3-pointe of his own, then VanOrman scored a layup midway through the frame. After the teams exchanged defensive stops, the Hornets took a 29-18 lead into halftime.Both teams got hot early in the third quarter, combining for six 3-pointers in the opening four minutes. Bisher drove to the basket with 1:40 remaining, then he buried another missile in the final minute, staking the Hornets to a 49-33 lead.The Vikings chipped away at the deficit in the fourth quarter, eventually pulling to within 53-45 after JT Luttermoser's basket midway through the frame. The would get no closer as the Hornets pulled away with Drews' free throws and constant offensive rebounds by Wilcox."We could've had serious flashbacks to last Friday because it was looking eerily similar for a while," Felix said. "But we made played down the stretch, and that shows signs of growth."Bisher finished with a game-high 17 points to lead the Hornets. VanOrman added 16 points, while Drews had 13 points. Wilcox scored nine points and Chase finished with eight points."We ran some sets at Brandon in the second half to get him some better looks, and Van-O was a huge part of our win" Felix said.Clark had 15 points to lead Dundee, while Anthony finished with 10 points.The Hornets will host Brooklyn Columbia Central on Tuesday. Hillsdale won the first meeting in double-overtime in December.